Electric switch



ELECTRI C SWITCH Filed Deo. 18, 1943 switch has a' snap action.

hunted Feb. 26, 1946' ELECTRIC swrron Frank E. Tiiany, Claremont, Calif., assignor ot one-fifth to Walter J. Mathieu, North Hollywood, Calif., one-iilth to James H. Reniers, San Marino, Calif., one-@fifth to Ralph d. Swonk,

Van Nuys, Calif., andorre-fifth to Francis J. Walsh, North Hollywood, Calif.

apprese@ December 18,1943, sensi No. 514,175 v claims. `(ci. c-cr) l This invention relates to electric switches, and

l one object of the invention is -to produce a, switch of simple construction, hraving few parts, and in which the use of metal parts is avoided except as employed in the contacts of the switch that are involved in closing the circuit through the same. Asis well hown, when an electric circuitv is suddenly opened, if the potential in the line is' suiciently high, a spark will be drawn at the point where the circuit is opened. Such a spark is destructive to the material employed at the contacts. One of the objects of this invention is to produce an electric switch that is so constructed, and which has a mode of operation which will reduce sparking to a minimum. l

It is a fact also, that if two contacts in an elecv tric circuit arey suddenly separated, the sparking eect will be reduced if the pressure between the contact points is relatively high', and the separating movement is sudden; in other words, if the One of the objects ci this invention is to producev an electric switch meeting this requirement, and having a mode of operation in which the separation of the contact points is so sudden that the length of time at which a spark could be .maintained ii' one is formed, would be relatively short.v This, oi coursais afactor. in reducing the destructive action ofaspark. l v

Another object of the inventioneis to produce a switch' of this type, of simple construction, in

which 'a glowing lamp not employing a regular lamp iilament, can be employed to indicate the position of the switch operating to reduce the glow when the switch is in its'open position, but which is shorted out of the circuit by closing oi. the switch. Y

One of the characteristics of this switch is the use of a leaf spring that is controlled bythe lever of the switch so as to develop a snapwaction `that controls the engagements, between, and the separating movements' of, the switch' points 4 to control the circuit; and one of the objects of my invention is to provide improved means for supporting this snap action member in theswitch housing, which will operate to give an eiective contact area when the switch points are in engagement with ample pressure between the same, at the same time, which will operate to give quick separation of the contact points when the circuit is opened through them.

Further objects of the invention will appear hereinafter.

The invention consists in the novel parts and combination of parts to be described hereinafter,

all of` which contribute to produce an eilicient..

electric switch. Y

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described in the following specification, while the broad scope oi the invention is pointed 'out in the appended claims.

In the drawing: Fig. i is a longitudinal section through a switch, capable of controlling two circuits; and

embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken about on the.

ing .a type of switch in which the resilient snapover member is of the same type as shown in Fig. 1, but in which its manner of controlling the movable contact of the switch, diiers from that illustrated in Figs. land 3,

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the circuit through the glow lamp in the switch lever, and indicating the manner in which it is shorted out of the circuit by closing the switch of th'e circuit.

Figs. 6 and 'I are respectively, a plan view and an edge elevation, illustrating a type of combined snap-over spring and contact in which the contact is struck from the material of the leaf spring.

Figs. 8 and 9 are views similar to Figs. 6 and 7, but illustrating another detail of constructionin which the snap-over member is in the form of a resilient wire, andthe contact member is formed with a base that is connected to the ends of the wire. I v

Fig. 10 is a side elevation, and illustrating'a construction in which two movable contacts are located on opposite sides of the snap spring, and connected to the ends of the same -by the same rivet or rivets. y

Fig. 11 is an end elevation o'f a block that constitutes a body of the housing.

l adjacent to, these notches, but the 'spring is too Y direction. This `two circuits.

long to fit into the space between the notches Y without becoming flexed. 'Ihe movement of the lever moves the spring to snap it over from one extreme `position to another. In one of these positions the switch will .beopen, and in the other position, closed. The spring may be operated as a simple flexing bow that can be snapped over between two extreme bowed positions, but

in other embodiments of the invention, the spring has the form of a rudimentary S, that is to say, one en d portion of the spring is bowed or flexed wardly. Of course, the end portion that is bowed in one direction, while the other end portion of the spring is bowed or flexed in the other adapts the switch for controlling Referring now particularly to Figs. l and 2, the switch includes a housing I, which is. preferdownwardly, will maintain the lower limbs of the rocking contacts 23, in engagement with the lower rst contacts 25, and vice versa.

-With the organization described above, it is ,evident that if the handle I9 is pulled over to ably formed of an insulated material such as y plastic or other suitable insulation, and includes a body portion or block 2 having a bottom wall from which an integral abutment 3 extends upwardly at an intermediate point on the length of the switch chamber 4 that is formed within lthe housing. This block 2 has end walls 5 and E integral with `the bottom wall, and also integral vwith upper wall sections 1 and 8 that extend l toward each other, but with a space 9 between them, in which the handle of the switch lever I9 is` received, and in which it swings to and fro between the limiting inclined faces Il and I2.

substantially rectangular boss or head I4 at its inner end, and on one of its side faces the-block I3 has an integral circular disc I5', the axis of which operates as a pivot on which the lever swings, and this axis substantially coincides with the vertex I6 of the abutmentz 3, which tapers up to this point as indicated in Fig. 1.

In order to enable the rotation to be eiected on this axis, the disc I5 is countersunk in a circular socket |58 formed in the inner face of a side plate I1 that is attachedV by a plurality of screws I8 to the side of the block 2. The switch lever 'Ill is formed with an operating handle i9 of tubular form, which extends out radially from the axis of the disc I5. On the side opposite tothe side plate I1, a similar side plate is provided, but this side plate is simply secured against the side of the block by a plurality of screws 2| similar to the screws I8.

The inner faces of the end walls 5 and '6 are provided with sockets 22 in the form of horizontally extending notches, andvin these notches,

' I provide rocking contact members 23 which are preferably in the form of plates of conductive `material such as metal, bent into the form of a V, so that these contacts present two limbs 23a and 23h. The limb 23a cooperates with an upper xed contact 24, and the lower one cooperates with a lower fixed .contact 25 mounted in the end walls-5 and 6,in a manner that will be den scribed hereinafter. Between the notches 22, and with its ends received in the V-shaped space between the limbs 23a and 23h, of each rocking contact, I provide a contact actuator 2B which, in the present instance, operates as a conductor for carrying current in a general diagonal direc-'- tion through the housing, that is to say, in the position in which the switch is shown in Fig. 1. this member 26 which is the snap member of the switch, connects the lower left-hand fixed contact 25, to the upper right-hand fixed contact 24.l

This snap member 26 is too long to t into The body of the switch lever I9 is also in the "form of a block I3 of dovetail form having a cause this portion to now downwardly and simule taneouslyV cause the end portionpof this snap memberon the other side of the axis at I6, to bow upwardly.

I'he xedv contacts 24 and 25 are preferably small pieces of metal bent to angular form, so

that the body portion of each contact can be slid into a corresponding notch 21. or 28, which are illustrated inFig. 11, and which are cut into the end walls 5I or 6 from opposite sides. Adjacent to each notch, a threaded opening 29 is provided, to receive a small screw 30 Vwhich can be clamped down on the end of a wire 3I that connects up to the contact.

If desired, a glow lamp or fluorescent lamp 32 may be provided within the tubular socket that is formed in the handle I9. 4 'I'his bore or socket extends all the way -in to the inner end of the lever I Il so as'to permit the glow lamp 32 to be inserted at thatpoint, and pushed outwardly to l a point near the end of the handle. Two leading in wires 33 and 34 are provided, leading in to the terminals 35a within the gas chamber A35 of this bulb, one of these wires beingv connected tothe snap member 26, and the other leading over to one of the contacts, for example, the contact 24, through a low resistance 34a. The existing wiring circuit to this glow lamp, is illustrated in Fig. 5, and in that view 26a indicates diagrammatically, the switch for carrying the current. When this switch is open as indicated in Fig. 5', the lamp will glow, but when the switch 26a isclosed, the lamp is shortcircuited and will not glow. 0f course, as this switch has only two positions,` the glowing of the lamp, or its failure to glow, will be a signal to indicate in the dark, what the condition of this switch is.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Fig. 3, I employ a bow type snap member 3B which, if unrestrained, wouldv be a straight spring. In this embodiment of the invention, the

inner end of this snap member 3B, thrusts into Vagainst the right-hand iixed terminal 42, but if the lever 40 is swung toward the right, the snap member 36 will be bowed in the opposite direction, and hold the rocking switch member 4I up against the other fixed contact 43 on the opposite wall of the housing.

'Ihe switch illustrated in Fig. 4, is a single switch like the one mustratea in Fig. a, but instead of using a bow-shaped snap member, I prefer to use a snapmember 44 which assumes arudimentary mais mountedin said housing and controlled by said actuator to open or close an electric circuit 8 form that is characteristic of Fig. 1. In this I case, however, the upper notch 45 is formed vin the cover 46 of the housing, and the two side walls of the housing are formed `with tapering abutments 41 between the tips of which a narrow throat 48 is formed, which operates as the node" snap member 44, so as to hold it over against a fixed contact i; but this contact 50 would naturally tend to bend itself by its own resiliency, away from the contact 5 l, so as to assume the position in which it is indicated in dotted lines in 50a. The operating lever 52 in this switch, would be constructed of the same general form as the switch lever fill of Fig. 3.

In Figs. 6. and '7 I illustrate a construction for a snap member 53, in which the contact member 54 is formed as an integraltongue struck out from the body of the snap member and bent out of the plane of the snap member, as indicated in Fig. 7. The end of this contact tongue 54 may be punched out to form a contact point 55,

The construction shown in Figs. 8 and 9, is substantially the same as that shown in Figs. 6

through said contacts. 2. lI n an electric switch, the combination of an insulatingswitch-housing having a switchchamber therein, the end walls of said housins having sockets therein, a contact actuator including a leaf spring having its ends engaged in said sockets and maintained thereby in a state of compression, said housing having an abutment projecting into said chamber at an intermediate point along the length thereof for engaging one -v side of the actuator, and a switch-lever mounted to rock "within said housing, having means forV engaging the actuator adjacent said abutment, said actuator being capable of assuming two extreme positions in which the portion of the actuator on one side of said abutment is exed in one direction, while the portion of the actuator on the other side of said abutment is exed in the opposite direction; and movable contacts controlled by the ends of said actuator for closing a circuit through the same.

3. In an electric switch. the combination of an insulating switch-housing having a switchchamber therein, a switch-lever rotatably mounted in said housing at an intermediate point on and 7, except that instead of forming the snap two sockets or sleeves 60 in which the ends of the forks 56 are secured.

In the construction illustrated in Fig. 10, the

snap member Si is mounted between two contact members 62, to which it is riveted by common rivets such as the rivet 53, the two contact members 62 diverging from each other toward the middle portion of the snap member, so that the eifective form'of this construction is the equivalent of the V-form rocker contact di illustrated in Fig. 3.v The'action' of this snap member andv combined contacts when placed-in a switch such as the switch shown in Fig. 3, would'have ,sub-

^ with Vthe tongue 58, and bent around to form stantially the same action as the snap member 36 illustrated in that figure.

, Many other embodiments of the invention' may 'be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention.

` what r claim is:l

1. In an electric switch, the combination of an insulating switch-housing having a switch-chamber therein, and having an abutment located at substantially the middle portion of said chamber,

' an insulating switch-lever mounted to rock 'on said housing, the end walls of said housing presenting a pair of oppositely disposedsockets. an actuator including a spring with its ends received in said sockets and maintained in a state of coim-v pression, said actuator capable of assuming two extreme positions in which the portion of the actuator on. one side of said abutment is flexed in one direction, and the portion of the actuator on the other' side of said abutment is flexed in the length thereof, and having a handle projecting outwardlyfrom said housing, said housing having an abutment projecting into the switchchamber from its wall on the side thereof remote.

from 'said handle, said housing having sockets in the form of notches formed in insulating material adjacent the `ends 'of said chamber sub- V form received in each notch and capable of rocking on each notch as a pivotal axis, so as to.

move to and fro across the medial plane in. said chamber, passing through said notches, a exible resilient leaf extending longitudinally within said chamber, with its ends received in the angle of the V ofj'said movable contacts, and maintained by the pressure on its ends -in a curved condition of rudimentary 8 form, with the material of said leaf on one side of'thc axis of said lever exed in an opposite direction from the material of said leaf on the other side of the axis `0f rotation of the lever, said lever having means for exerting located between said notches, a switch lever tilt' ably mounted in said housing about said fulcrum apex; a leaf spring compressed between said notches and extending between said lever and the curvature of said S and contact means adaptthe opposite direction, said lever having means.

for engaging said actuator to move the same yalternately into its extreme positions; and coned to be opened and closed by movement of said leaf spring.

5. A 4switch construction, comprising: a leaf spring; means engaging the ends to axially compress said spring, and means engageable with the central portion of said spring to cause ,said spring to assume a reversible 8 conguration; a switch- I 4 t lever for reversing the 8 congration of said4 the curvature of said 8; a V-shaped contact clip interposed in at least one of said notches around the corresponding end o! said leaf spring and forming legs diverging along opposite sides thereof; and at least one contact bracket positioned `ior engagement by a leg of said clip.

7. A switch construction, comprising: a leaf spring; means engaging the ends to axially compress said spring, and means engageable with the central portion of said spring to cause said spring to assume a reversible S configuration; a

switch-lever for reversing the S configuration of said leaf spring; a V-shaped contact cli-p embracing at least one end of said leaf spring and caused to rock by movement of said spring; and a contact element engageable by said contact clip. 

